Reap the Benefits by Getting Organized Online

By Paige Tepping

RISMEDIA, Jan. 16, 2008-In a fast-paced, technology-driven world, the time when a completely integrated Web-based transaction management system is the norm is fast approaching. The real estate industry, as with many industries, however, is full of individuals who aren’t quite ready to embrace a robust transaction management solution at this time. A simpler entry point was needed. That’s why listening to their customers was the number-one step in creating DocCentral, a new and intuitive document management platform from Fidelity National Real Estate Solutions (FNRES), a division of Fidelity National Financial, Inc. which is being launched by SoCalMLS.

“We have been looking at transaction management systems for two to three years and we never found one system that seemed to offer everything our customers needed,” says Russ Bergeron, CEO of Anaheim-based SoCalMLS. “The biggest drawback was the adoption rate. It was hard to get our customers to buy into it. There was no easy way to get them involved in the actual system.”

Taking a step back, Bergeron and his team focused on one thought: What piece of the transaction system would everyone use and immediately benefit from? The idea of building a generic, open platform to store all the documents related to the real estate transaction came to mind. Taking this one step further, the program would allow their customers to keep the documents updated and anyone involved in the transaction would have access to them. “This is how we ended up at DocCentral,” says Bergeron. “We pitched it to FNRES, and everyone liked it, so we decided to roll with it.”

“DocCentral is an open system that will integrate with any existing transaction management platform. Real estate brokers/agents don’t have to be using a specific system in order to take advantage of DocCentral,” says Bergeron. It is a simple, intuitive and cost-effective tool that allows real estate professionals to transition all of their documents into a digital environment. The system stores documents on secure servers and is accessible 24/7 by agents and the clients and vendors that they authorize. “Anybody who has access to the transaction will have access to the documents, no matter where they are,” adds Bergeron.

Bergeron believes that “if you find a good base product to attach to the MLS, everyone will benefit.” He goes on to say that, “we like to do anything that we feel will make the real estate brokers/agents’ job easier, more efficient and look more professional.” The system will help brokers/agents with the organizational side of the transaction and will create a more formal, standard way of tracking all the steps within a transaction.

“DocCentral is easy to use and we made it as straightforward as possible. We really want people to use it,” says Bergeron.

The open system allows for transactions to be more efficient and documents can be found, printed and given to buyers and sellers in a timely manner. Documents can easily be faxed or transferred into the system as well.

An added benefit of the program comes in the form of risk management.

“DocCentral provides document protection as well as an electronic backup of all the documents that are uploaded to the system,” says Bergeron. The progress of a transaction can be checked on at any time and documents can be checked to make sure everything has been signed and filed away accordingly.

“The program was made to benefit everyone. It makes transactions efficient and brokers and agents don’t have to take the time to learn how to use a full-blown transaction system,” adds Bergeron. “We are confident, though, that once everyone is comfortable with using an online document portfolio, the transition to using a full transaction management platform will follow naturally.”

For more information, visit www.realestate.fnf.com.

Real Estate Hot Topics

Profit Center: Real Estate Tips, Training & Events

RISMedia Solutions

RISMedia on the Go

Today's Featured Listing